Mizuho Financial Group Inc., the nation's third-biggest bank by market value, agreed to buy more North American loans from Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC for about $500 million (¥60 million) as it deepens an expansion abroad.
The $5.6 billion of loan commitments includes $500 million of drawn assets, RBS said in a statement Monday. The Edinburgh-based bank expects to log a loss of about $30 million on the sale.
Mizuho initially bought a portfolio of loans to about 200 North American companies from RBS in February for about $3 billion as part of a push to expand its client base in the region. The deal allowed Mizuho to negotiate to hire staff from RBS, which is shrinking its global footprint to focus on consumer banking in the U.K. following seven years of losses.
Tokyo-based Mizuho is in talks to hire 130 to 200 employees from RBS's U.S. unit, including fixed-income and loan staff members, a person with knowledge of the matter said this month. The Japanese bank recruited five senior investment bankers from RBS for debt capital markets and corporate finance, it said in a statement on April 7.
"Together with the announced sale to Mizuho in late February, approximately two-thirds of our North American corporate loan portfolio and associated commitments identified for exit have now been disposed of," RBS said Monday.
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